Ethnic entrepreneurship - case study- Turin, Italy

Ethnic entrepreneurship
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Case study: Turin, Italy
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Contents
About CLIP
1. Introduction
2. Profile of Turin
3. Turin’s urban economy
4. Profiles of ethnic entrepreneurship
5. Policies, rules and regulations
6. Summary and conclusions
Bibliography
Interview partners
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1
In 2006, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, the city of Stuttgart and the European
Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) formed the ‘European network of cities
for local integration policies’, henceforth known as CLIP.
1
This network comprises a steering committee, a group of
expert European research centres and a number of European cities. In the following two years, the cities of Vienna and
Amsterdam joined the CLIP Steering Committee. The network is also supported by the Committee of the Regions (CoR)
and the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and has formed a partnership with the European
Network Against Racism (ENAR).
Through the medium of separate city reports (case studies) and workshops, the network enables local authorities to learn
from each other and to deliver a more effective integration policy. The unique character of the CLIP network is that it
organises a shared learning process between the participating cities and between the cities and a group of expert
European research centres as well as between policymakers at local and European level.
The CLIP network currently brings together more than 30 large and medium-sized cities from all regions of Europe:
Amsterdam (NL), Antwerp (BE), Arnsberg (DE), Athens (EL), Barcelona (ES), Bologna (IT), Breda (NL), Budapest
(HU), Copenhagen (DK), Dublin (IE), Frankfurt (DE), Helsinki (FI), Istanbul (TR), İzmir (TR), Kirklees (UK), Liège
(BE), Lisbon (PT), Luxembourg (LU), L’Hospitalet (ES), Malmö (SE), Mataró (ES), Newport (UK), Prague (CZ),
Strasbourg (FR), Stuttgart (DE), Sundsvall (SE), Tallinn (EE), Terrassa (ES), Turin (IT), Turku (FI), Valencia (ES),
Vienna (AT), Wolverhampton (UK), Wrocław (PL), Zagreb (HR), Zeytinburnu (TR) and Zürich (CH).
The cities in the network are supported in their shared learning by a group of expert European research centres in:
n Bamberg, Germany (European Forum for Migration Studies, EFMS);
n Vienna (Institute for Urban and Regional Research, ISR);
n Amsterdam (Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, IMES);
n Turin (International and European Forum on Migration Research, FIERI);
n Wrocław (Institute of International Studies);
n Swansea, Wales (Centre for Migration Policy Research, CMPR).
There are four research modules in total. The first module was on housing – segregation, access to, quality and
affordability for migrants – which has been identified as a major issue impacting on migrants’ integration into their host
society. The second module examined equality and diversity policies in relation to employment within city
administrations and in the provision of services. The focus of the third module was intercultural policies and intergroup
relations. This final module looks at ethnic entrepreneurship.
About CLIP
© European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, 2012
1
See also http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/areas/populationandsociety/clip.htm.

2
Acknowledgements
The researchers from FIERI are responsible for this report on Turin.
The author would like to thank all the interviewees and the participants he encountered during the field visit. He is
particularly grateful to Ilda Curti, Counsellor for Integration Affairs, and Marisa Cortese, a member of her staff, for their
support in collecting materials and information. The author is completely responsible for the content of this report and
for any mistakes it may contain.

3
This module of CLIP deals with ethnic entrepreneurship. It explores the development of ethnic entrepreneurship and
reviews the role of policy interventions in that process. It is motivated by the desire of municipal, national and European
governments and third-sector institutions to create an environment conducive to setting up and developing small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in general and ethnic businesses in particular.
Various components of the urban economy interact to produce a complex but also dynamic ecological system,
dramatically affecting the political economy of cities and, in so doing, entrepreneurial opportunities.
The study therefore focuses on the emergence of ethnic entrepreneurs in the sectors and cities involved and the role of
governmental and non-governmental regulation in it, and asks the following basic research questions.
A. What are the characteristics of the urban economy and which openings have emerged in a number of cities since
1980? How has the political economy of these cities evolved? More specifically, how has the SME sector developed
in general in terms of numbers of businesses, volume of workforce, value of sales, variety of products and market
segmentation, and what has been i) the spatial distribution, ii) the distribution over the various sectors of the urban
economy and iii) the ethnic, gender and age composition?
B. What kind of profiles of ethnic entrepreneurship can be identified? How does the emergence of ethnic
entrepreneurship fit into the specific dynamics of the wider urban economy? Which general and specific barriers do
ethnic entrepreneurs encounter and what are their competitive advantages? What are the structural determinants of
the observed trends? What are the employment effects of ethnic business? How many and what quality of jobs have
been generated on the local labour market?
C. What policies have cities implemented in general, and in the ethnic SME sector in particular, at the local level and
how have they shaped ethnic minorities’ self-employment trajectories? How have policy debates and interventions
on (ethnic) entrepreneurship influenced the emergence of entrepreneurial opportunities – real or discursive – and
further development of ethnic businesses? What policies support access to employment for migrants in ethnic
businesses?
After a brief overview of characteristics of the migrant population settled in Turin, the report will focus on the topic of
this study, analysing ethnic entrepreneurship in the city.
The study will first deal with the characteristics of Turin’s urban economy in general, focusing on which openings have
emerged in the last two decades and how the political economy has evolved.
The focus will then turn to profiles of ethnic entrepreneurship in Turin. We will describe the development, in quantitative
terms, of ethnic entrepreneurship while also giving statistics about matters such as business closures. There will be some
discussion of the problems and barriers that ethinc entrepreneurs have encountered in Turin in financial matters, general
management, marketing, bureacracy and compliance with rules and regulations.
The next section, which constitutes the bulk of the study, concerns the Turin Municipality’s approach and policies
towards ethnic entrepreneurship. There will be some discussion about the main actors involved in the formulation of
(ethnic) entrepreneurship policies and institutions framework. Some relevant policies and best practice examples will
also be analysed.
The study is completed by a formal conclusion.
Introduction
1

4
The author began work on the study with a review of the existing literature and database consultation. Nevertheless, the
research consisted of two main stages: information collection through the so-called Common Reporting Scheme (CRS)
and a field visit to Turin carried out by the author with the support of the Municipality. The CRS, which is the same for
all the cities involved in the CLIP project, includes information on policy objectives, programmes and activities of the
city, and characteristics of ethnic entrepreneurs. During the field visit, key figures in the Turin Municipality and
government bodies – with specific tasks in the (ethnic) entrepreneurship issue – were interviewed, as were key figures
in the Chamber of Commerce, business associations and ethnic associations. Documents produced by various bodies,
such as the Municipality, government bodies, associations and private foundations, were also collected in order to
provide more precise information on their aims, activities and results.

5
Turin is located in north-west Italy, in the Piedmont region. The municipality has 909,345 inhabitants distributed across
10 neighbourhoods with varying population densities
2
. It is Italy’s fourth largest city (Istat data, 2008) and its history is
closely connected with internal migration flows and the economic development of the 1960s, due principally to the
automotive sector, led by Fiat.
Once mainly an industrial city and district, Turin has become an important cultural and tourist destination in the last
decade. As a result of the 2006 Winter Olympic Games being held in Turin, the city’s historical buildings were restored
and important infrastructure was built. The urban economy was stimulated by these developments and many new
businesses were established.
Turin is also characterised by a sizable and heterogeneous immigrant population, which is changing the landscape of the
city. Urban regeneration processes, migration flows and transformation due to the increase of the ethnic economy,
combined with the shift from the previously automotive-oriented economy to a knowledge-based and ICT economy, are
examples of converging processes that affect the urban social fabric in profound ways. They add new dimensions to the
already existing economic, social and cultural diversity.
Turin has experienced four various migration waves with differing thrusts and motivations.
The first wave started in the early 1970s and included students, mainly from the Middle East, Senegal and Nigeria, and
political refugees and regime opponents from Chile and Argentina in South America and Eritrea and Somalia in Africa.
The second wave, also in the 1970s, was composed mainly of domestic workers; initially Somali and Eritrean women,
then Filipino and Cape Verdean nationals.
The third wave occurred in the period between the mid-1980s and the mid-1990s when Turin witnessed a surge in the
number of Moroccans and other Africans settling there, along with Asians from the Philippines and ethnic Chinese
communities and Peruvians from South America.
The last wave brought eastern Europeans to the city, many initially from Albania, followed by Romanians and others
(Davico, Pastore, Ronca, 1998; Ricucci, 2005).
Some of the main characteristics of the current immigrant population include:
n a high number of families with plans to remain;
n a high number of pupils from migratory backgrounds attending school;
n increasing participation in the labour market, both as employers and employees (Allasino, 2008).
Data from the Statistics Office of the Municipality of Turin shows that by the end of 2009, there were 122,501 foreign
nationals living in the city, equal to 13.4% of the entire resident population. The main countries of origin were Romania,
Morocco, Peru, Albania, China and Egypt.
Profile of Turin
2
2
Data as of 31 December 2008, Statistics Office of the Turin Municipality.

6
Table 1: Main nationalities of foreign documented citizens in Turin (December 2009)
Source: Statistics Office of the Municipality of Turin.
In the last five years, the immigrant resident population in Turin has increased by 76.5%, from a total of 69,361 in 2004
up to 122,501 in 2009. Broken down by country of origin, the Romanian population has increased by 31,013 in the last
five years, the Moroccan by 5,501, the Peruvian by 3,088, the Albanian by 1,525, the Chinese by 1,701 and the Egyptian
by 1,522.
Nowadays, immigration from eastern European countries is the most dynamic, in part due to what is known as the
‘Bossi-Fini legalisation’, an amnesty which allowed a large number of people who had entered the country illegally to
regularise their status (Rava, 2007).
Every year, it becomes clearer that foreigners’ presence in Turin, as in the rest of the region and in Italy, is more and
more a structural phenomenon. Many areas of society are now characterised, and sometimes modified in their
organisation, by the work, activities and everyday actions of immigrants well-adapted to the socio-economic fabric of
the city. These areas include the labour market, household life, the structure of services and schools, the organisation of
cultural and religious spaces and requests for political participation (Ricucci, 2005).
At the same time, family reunification has balanced the gender dimension, although there are ethnic communities still
strongly characterised by gender; the majority of Peruvians and Filipinos are women, while Senegalese immigrants are
mainly men.
If we analyse the age structure of the immigrant population, it is composed essentially of young people. Data from the
Municipality of Turin shows that 21.5% of the immigrant population is under the age of 18 (26,432). The head of the
Municipality of Turin’s Office of Statistics reports that there is now a preponderance of immigrants in Turin aged around
30 years old (30.7% of the total of foreign nationals resident in the city in 2007 and up to 31.5% compared with 2005),
whereas the other age ranges have changed little as a proportion of the total. In 2005, children aged up to nine years
made up 13.6% of the total immigrant population and 14.2% in 2006; adolescents made up 9.1% in 2005 and 9.5% in
2006; 5.6% were 50 or above in 2005 and 6.2% in 2006 (Rava, 2007, p. 81).
Migrants’ insertion in the labour market is not equally distributed among the various economic sectors. The distribution
of the 30,378 regularly employed workers in the Province of Turin
3
is as follows: 2.8% in agriculture (almost nine out
Country of origin
Number of
foreign nationals
% of the total of foreign
nationals resident in Turin
Romania 50,434 41.1
Morocco 18,747 15.3
Peru 8,109 6.6
Albania 5,543 4.5
China 4,852 3.9
Eygpt 3,613 2.9
Other countries (EU and outside EU) 31,203 25.4
Total 122,501 100.0
3
The only data available refer to the Province.

7
of ten with short-term contracts); 13.6% in industry; 25.6% in the building sector; 5.7% in commerce; and 51% in
services (including enterprise cleaning services, hotels and restaurants, private institutional health care workers for
elderly and disabled people, and personal and domestic services, including home cleaning and child care). The highest
concentration of immigrant workers is found in domestic labour, where over half of employees (an estimate, according
to data from Inail, the Italian Workers’ Compensation Authority) are immigrants (Di Monaco, 2008). An increasing
number of foreign nationals are self-employed. We will focus more on this issue, which constitutes the bulk of the study,
in the next section.
The issue of ethnic associations is not easy to write about in the Turin context. Even where numerous ethnic and inter-
ethnic associations have been formed over the years, little is known about their history, evolution and characteristics.
Various attempts have been made to file and record them but have yielded only a partial picture of a situation that is in
a continuous state of flux (Ires Piemonte, 1998; Cicsene, 2001). However, the Integration Affairs Office of the
Municipality of Turin is working to build a complete and useful database of all ethnic associations in Turin.
Although ethnic associations are an important point of reference for immigrants, the associations themselves are having
trouble making an impact on the city’s policy-making processes. This is not only because they lack their own exclusively
dedicated human resources, but because they are often managed by individuals who may not understand what it means
to head up an association in Italy, which public bodies to turn to, and how to acquire information and funding.
Relations between the groups have been generally weak and each group has been looking for a specific relationship with
the city. In recent years, there has been a wide consensus on the high quality of collaboration and networking among
ethnic associations in the Turin area.
Foreign associations are key elements in welcoming immigrants and promoting their integration. They are certainly a
point of reference for many immigrants, especially in the initial phase, when language difficulties and suspicion of
services different from their country of origin may encourage immigrants to go where they can find people from the same
country (such as parishes, mosques, informal meeting places, associations). Over the years, Turin has seen a change in
the role of ethnic associations and they now concentrate less on the initial needs of immigrants when they arrive, and
more on the social and cultural promotion of their community, especially among the younger members.

9
Historical development
Turin is Italy’s fourth largest city and its history is closely connected with internal migration flows and the economic
development of the 1960s, due principally to the development of the automotive sector, led by Fiat.
For over 40 years, Turin has been a ‘mono-industrial’ economy. Economic crises and the consequent social problems
characterised the late 1970s and the 1980s (Whitford and Enrietti, 2005). As in other automotive regions in Europe, the
local economy has been hit hard by the crisis in the automotive sector since the 1990s, and for this reason several
measures have been put in place, at regional and local level, to facilitate the diversification of existing companies and to
strengthen the capabilities of the territory and to increase its competitiveness (Comitato Giorgio Rota – Circolo L’Eau
Vive, 2004).
The 1990s represented a turning point for Turin. A difficult transition from dependence on the automotive sector to a
diversified economic structure not only favoured the development of new activities, but also contributed to investment
in the promotion of the city’s cultural and historical background. The Egyptian Museum, second only to that of Cairo,
and the National Museum of Cinema, together with its Torino Film Festival, have become key elements of this aspect
of the city’s economy. Along the same lines, the 2006 Winter Olympics represented a strategic opportunity to invest in
infrastructure and to improve the diversification of the economy by promoting international cultural events and
developing the tourist sector (Torino Internazionale, 2006).
Today, Turin is undergoing a full-scale transformation, stimulated partly by Fiat’s embracing of new technologies and
by the fact that the city has become a centre of international importance in the ICT sector (Comitato Giorgio Rota –
Circolo L’Eau Vive, 2008).
In the last 30 years, Turin’s economy has developed in line with national and global trends, characterised primarily by
growth in the service sector and by the decline of industry and agriculture. Saleable services have grown faster in Turin
than the national average.
4
In the early 1980s, Italy’s economic situation was subject to the destabilising effects of the
oil crisis of the 1970s and by rising inflation driven by public spending. The monetary restrictions of those times, partly
due to Italy’s participation in the European Monetary System (EMS), affected many jobs in industry and in smaller
enterprises. In Turin, the crisis caused by the decline of industry lasted until at least 1985. The city’s economic growth
at that time was due solely to the contribution made by the service sector.
In the next decade, services grew even faster in the Turin area. In 1981, services accounted for 51.2% of total added
value, and by 1991 the percentage had risen to 61.6%. At the national level, the percentage of the economy represented
by services grew from 58% in 1981 to 65.5% in 1991.
Between 1991 and 2001, economic growth in the Turin area slowed gradually due to the decline in industry, which
produced 2.3% less than in the previous decade, while services continued to grow. Added value generated by the service
sector in the Turin area grew by 27.1% as compared to 23.8% in Italy as a whole. In 2001, services represented 67.6%
of total added value in the Province of Turin.
Turin’s urban economy
3
4
Torino negli ultimi cinquant’anni (Turin in the last fifty years), Chamber of Commerce of Turin, 2004, p. 38.

10
In the 1990s, Turin’s contribution to the national wealth stayed about the same as in the previous decade, representing
4.7% of Italy’s total added value.
Looking at the structure of production and the various sectors of business, manufacturing industry shrank considerably
between 1971 and 1996. Expressing the trend in the sector in terms of numbers of employees, it has been calculated that
41% of manufacturing employees lost their jobs between 1971 and 1996. The decline in employment in the
manufacturing sector, which was accentuated in the 1980s and 1990s, is one of the key characteristics of the urban
economy in the Turin area in recent decades. Most of the drop in employment in manufacturing has been compensated
for by an increase in the number of employees in companies providing services for business, to which many services
have been outsourced over the years. This number grew in the Turin area from 20,000 in 1981 to 48,000 in 1991
(+135.2%). Starting in the 1980s and continuing even more in the 1990s, Turin’s businesses were involved in an
important process of restructuring of production and organisation. In those years, companies began to outsource
functions, not directly involved in production, which were previously performed in-house, contracting them out to
specialised service providers.
The size of businesses in Turin has shrunk over the years as the city’s economic structure has evolved. Gauged by the
number of employees, for example, the average business in Turin has shrunk from 9.7 employees in 1971 to 5.4
employees in 1996. This shrinkage, which continued over the next decade, affected practically all sectors of the economy
except commerce and public services, hotels and restaurants.
As a result, small enterprise has grown at the expense of larger businesses and industry, especially in recent decades.
This trend is in line with national and global dynamics.
Turin’s urban economy was strongly tied to Fiat in the 1980s, but enterprises are now increasingly ‘unbound’ from the
presence of the automotive industry and the rate of internationalisation has certainly grown. The last decade has been
characterised by growth in personal and business services, and these sectors now represent a significant portion of the
city’s economic activities. Construction firms have grown significantly since the 1990s, thanks in part to the contribution
made by foreign citizens (particularly Romanians and Albanians) and to the fragmentation of the industries present in
the sector in the past. Many former employees have, in fact, decided to set up their own businesses in the sector.
Turin’s urban economy since 2000 has been characterised by a short period of growth between 2005 and 2007, followed
by shrinkage due to the international financial crisis which began in the autumn of 2008. The effect of the crisis has been
shrinkage in all sectors of manufacturing industry. The transportation sector has been one of the sectors that has suffered
a worldwide decline and the Turin area, so strongly linked with the automotive industry, has been hit hard.
However, enterprise has revealed sustained growth in the construction sector, followed by personal and business
services. The sectors hardest hit by the drop in production and consumption have been manufacturing, commerce and,
to a lesser extent, tourism.
In response to the economic crisis, therefore, Turin’s urban economy has demonstrated a certain degree of dynamism
and an ability to renew its vocation in enterprise, despite a slight drop in the growth of new enterprises since 2008.
Size and characteristics of workforce
Unfortunately, no data about the exact number of migrants working in the city are available. However, the most recent
figures available for the workforce in the Province of Turin state that it includes more than one million people. Of the
1,030,000 individuals aged 15–64 who are employed or are in search of employment, 571,000 are male (55.4%) and

11
460,000 are female (44.6%). The Province of Turin represents more than half of the workforce of the Piedmont region
and 4.1% of Italy’s total workforce of 25,097,000.
5
Between 2006 and 2007, the workforce in the Province of Turin grew
1.4%, while growth between 2007 and 2008 was greater, at 2.6%. In 2008, 68.6% of the population aged 15–64 was in
work. If we divide the figures by gender, a large gap emerges between the percentage of men aged 15–64 in the
workforce (75.8%) against 61.4% of women in the same age range who are employed or looking for work.
If we analyse the rate of employment by age, we see that Turin has the region’s lowest rate of employment for the 15–24
age range (30.5%), compared to an average of 35.4% for the Piedmont region.
6
The employment rate for people over 55
is also lower than the regional average, at 12.7% for Turin, compared to 13.2% for the region.
The employment rate in the Province of Turin has grown slightly despite the economic crisis, from 63.8% (2006) to
64.0% (2007) and 64.7% (2008). This growth is more accentuated than in Piedmont as a whole, which registered an
increase in the employment rate from 64.8% to 65.2% in the same three years. The difference is due primarily to the
increase in employment of women in the Province of Turin. In a 2007 report on the economy, the city’s Chamber of
Commerce stated that the Province of Turin ranked 54th (out of more than 100) in a hypothetical ranking of Italian
provinces by employment rate.
Analysis of the structure of employment by position and sector confirms what had already emerged in recent years.
Services now employ more than half of the province’s working population, maintaining a positive trend. In 2008, 1.6%
of the working population were employed in agriculture, 32.3% in industry and 66.15% in services. There was a 5.9%
drop in employment in industry in 2007 and 2008, counterbalanced by 5.0% growth in the service sector in the same
years,
7
reflecting the continuing trend of the replacement of industry with services.
In 2008, 77.3% of workers were employees, while 22.7% were independent. This figure reveals a slight decrease in the
number of self-employed workers on the previous year, when 76.1% of workers were employees and 23.8% were
independent workers. More than half of independent workers are self-employed, but this component is decreasing, as is
the number of entrepreneurs. The number of consultants, self-employed professionals and cooperative members is on the
rise.
Development of SMEs
Since the 1980s and 1990s enterprises in Turin have been carrying out a comprehensive restructuring in production and
organisation. The process was begun by outsourcing a number of functions not directly involved in production to
specialised service providers, which were previously performed in-house. As already noted, enterprises have decreased
in size as Turin’s economic structure has evolved. The average number of employees in a company in the Turin area
dropped from 9.7 in 1971 to 5.4 in 1996. This decrease, which continued into the following decade, has taken place in
practically all sectors of the economy except commerce and public services, hotels and restaurants.
5
ISTAT source, http://www.piemonteincifre.it
6
2007 figures. Torino Economia, rapporto sulla Provincia di Torino 2008 (Turin’s economy: A report on the Province of Turin in
2008), Chamber of Commerce of Turin.
7
ISTAT source, http://www.piemonteincifre.it

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Small and medium-sized businesses have therefore grown, especially in the past two decades, at the expense of larger
enterprises and industry. In recent years in particular, small to medium-sized enterprises in the Turin area have grown
and become restructured. Immigrants and women now play an essential role in these enterprises. Since 1990, the sectors
of production in which Piedmont excels, both traditionally and in more innovative fields, have demonstrated renewed
vigour. The contribution to this trend made by immigration, beginning in the 1990s and leading to a consistent influx of
foreign workers during the following decade, has also led to the emergence of a structural component of foreign
entrepreneurs which will be discussed in greater depth in the next chapter.
A study conducted by the Chamber of Commerce of Turin suggests that between 2000 and 2007, the number of new
enterprises registered in the area increased by 10% (more than 21,000 additional units) and 38% of these offered both
business and personal services.
8
Table 2: Changes in the type of enterprises registered in the Province of Turin (2000–2007)
One of the most important changes to the types of small to medium-sized businesses in Turin is significant growth in the
construction sector. The increase in the number of construction firms registered with the Chamber of Commerce began
in the 1990s. Between 1990 and 1999, 9,216 construction firms were registered, and between 2000 and 2007, the number
rose to 20,419. This boom in the construction industry is, according to the Chamber of Commerce, primarily due to two
factors: employees who have left their employers to set up their own businesses, and an increase in the number of
immigrants (particularly Albanians, followed by Romanians) working in the construction industry.
9
Sectors of activity
Percentage variation,
2000–2007
Percentage of total,
2007
Percentage of total,
2000
Agriculture and fishing -8.0 6.2 7.5
Industry 0.7 11.9 13.0
Construction 4.9 15.3 12.1
Commerce 0.7 26.6 27.1
Hotels and restaurants 3.7 4.8 4.1
Business services, including: 1.6 23.7 22.9
Transportation-storage-communication -0.5 3.9 3.9
Financial and monetary intermediation 1.3 2.4 2.5
Real estate, information systems, research 2.1 17.4 16.6
Health, education, other social services 1.5 5.0 4.8
Unclassified -3.2 6.6 8.6
Total 1.2 100.0 100.0
8
Torino Economia, rapporto sulla Provincia di - Torino 2008 (Turin’s economy: A report on the Province of Turin in 2008), Chamber
of Commerce of Turin, p. 13.
9
Interview personally conducted with Barbara Barazza, Studies and Surveys Office, Chamber of Commerce of Turin.

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Sectoral distribution of SMEs
Most sole proprietorships in the Province of Turin specialise in commerce (33.4%) and construction (21.7%). Sole
proprietorships represent more than 50% of Piedmont’s businesses and the figure has remained substantially the same
during the 12 months following the beginning of the global financial crisis (+0.2% between 2008 and 2009). In the past,
their growth has been supported by foreign entrepreneurs, but 2009 saw a slowdown in the growth of foreign owners of
sole proprietorships (from +10.6% to +7.8%), while the number of Italian proprietors dropped by -0.8%.
10
Distribution of enterprises in the Turin area by sector may be viewed as dynamic, particularly in relation to the changes
in 2009. (Information on distribution among sectors in previous decades has been given in the previous section.) This
perspective is useful for understanding the particular economic trend at the moment, allowing us to assess the effects of
the economic crisis on each sector of business. The figures presented here are part of a wider-ranging study conducted
by the Studies and Surveys Office of the Chamber of Commerce of Turin.
11
The year 2009 saw considerable growth in commerce, both wholesale (+1%) and retail (+0.8%), primarily driven by the
leading sectors of street markets and electronics. But local neighbourhood commerce, including many businesses run by
immigrants, suffered an overall drop in 2009: -1% for bakeries, -1.3% for butchers and -0.8% for greengrocers. Other
types of retail outlets traditionally operated by immigrants have also seen a decline. Clothing and textiles fell by 1.6%
in 2009 and home furnishings by 2.2%, counterbalanced by an increase in second-hand trade (+5.6%) and street markets
(+6.7%).
The business services sector, which is on the whole stable, saw significant drops in the areas of rental (-5.2%) and
transportation (-2.7%). This sector also includes an activity which has seen strong growth in recent years, financial
intermediation and consumer credit, which fell by 0.7% in 2009. The real estate sector is also holding its ground despite
the crisis (+0.3%) and now accounts for about 36% of services.
The vast sector referred to as ‘personal services’ has grown significantly since 2009, thanks in part to the contribution
of foreign-owned enterprises. More than 60% of the enterprises operating in this sector are considered consumer services
(including hairdressers, beauty treatments and physical fitness centres), which have grown by 2%.
For some years now, the two most dynamic sectors in small to medium-sized businesses in Turin have been tourism and
construction. In 2009, these sectors grew by +2.2% and +1.2% respectively. Immigrants have made a significant
contribution to these two sectors, as they have done elsewhere. The tourism sector includes activities such as restaurants
and bars (+5% and +1% in 2009), characterised by high turnover. In the area of hospitality services, the number of hotels
is growing (+1.4%), while more economical forms of tourist accomodation are decreasing in popularity (-3.4% for
hostels, camping grounds and holiday rentals). Growth continued in the construction sector in 2009, although at rates
much lower than those registered in recent years (+1.2%). Finally, the numbers of artisans and tradespeople, who
represented about 29% of all enterprises in Piedmont in 2009, remained essentially stable compared to 2008 (-0.1%).
10
Source: Chamber of Commerce of Turin.
11
The results of this study were presented in a conference entitled ‘Birth and death of enterprises in Turin in 2009’ held on the
premises of the Chamber of Commerce of Turin on 23 March 2010. An extract is available at http://m.cameradicommercio.it in
the Themes section.

14
If we look at the sectors in which artisans and tradespeople work, construction is in first place, representing 43.6% of all
enterprises of this kind in the Turin area, followed by industry (24.7%) and business services (13.9%). Of all artisanal
and trades enterprises registered in the Province of Turin, 80% are sole proprietorships.
Spatial distribution of SMEs
About half of all enterprises registered in Piedmont are based in the Province of Turin, followed by the Provinces of
Cuneo and Alessandria. Unfortunately, no data for the distribution of SMEs in the region’s only city are available.
Chamber of Commerce data only cover the provincial level. Figure 1 shows the breakdown of enterprises registered in
Piedmont, by province.
Figure 1: Enterprises registered by province, as of 31 December 2009
The Turin area is broken down into nine sub-provincial areas, as defined on the basis of the Territorial Provincial Pacts,
to which we may add the provincial capital
12
: Po-Settimo Torinese; Susa; Sangone; Stura-Ciriè; Pinerolo; Zona Ovest-
Collegno; Torino Sud-Moncalieri; Canavese-Ivrea; and the city of Turin.
Torino
50.58%
Verbano C.O.
3.00%
Novara
6.87%
Cuneo
15.88%
Asti
5.54%
Alessandria
10.08%
Biella
4.25%
Vercelli
3.79%
12
This subdivision is the one normally adopted by the Studies and Surveys Office of the Chamber of Commerce of Turin, the recent
work of which this section refers to.

15
Figure 2: The nine sub-provincial divisions of the Province of Turin
Source: Rete di Parità nello Sviluppo Locale (Network for Fair Local Development), http://www.retediparita.it
The regional capital plays a significant role in the geographic distribution of enterprises in the Province of Turin. Some
48.5% of all enterprises are based in the city of Turin, about 11% in Canavese-Ivrea, 10.6% in Turin South-Moncalieri,
7.6% in the West/Collegno.
13
The Pinerolo area, traditionally one of the most stable economic areas, is home to just
under 7% of the province’s enterprises, followed by the Stura-Ciriè area and then all the others.
Recent changes
Since 2000, the economic fabric of the Province of Turin has increasingly taken on a multifaceted, multi-purpose form.
The changes have affected not only construction – though we must acknowledge that this sector still retains the greatest
vitality (+45.1% since 2000) – but what is collectively referred to as ‘services’, from traditional to ‘advanced’.
Between 2007 and 2009, growth in small to medium-sized businesses has, like other sectors, seen a slowdown due to
the increasingly severe economic and financial crisis, even though the number of businesses registered in the Province
of Turin has continued to grow significantly. This reveals a certain degree of dynamism in the area and an ability to face
the difficulties imposed by a particularly negative economic trend. Towards the end of 2008, the construction sector
continued to grow while the commerce and tourism sectors suffered a setback.
In 2009, according to InfoCamere figures, 31,109 new companies were established and 30,465 went out of business in
the region of Piedmont. The balance is therefore slightly positive (+0.14%), although below the balance registered in
2008 (+0.44%) and in 2007 (+0.69%).
14
This figure brings the total number of companies registered in Piedmont’s
13
Source: Torino Economia, rapporto sulla provincia di Torino 2008 (Turin’s economy: A report on the Province of Turin in 2008)
Chamber of Commerce of Turin, p. 18.
14
For comparative purposes, the national growth rate for the year 2009 was +0.28%. The growth rate for northwest Italy in 2009 was
+0.5%. Source: InfoCamere.

16
chambers of commerce up to 468,406.
15
The smallest enterprises (many of which have a single proprietor and only one
or two employees) are those which have suffered the most from the effects of the crisis. In the territory of the Province
of Turin, the growth rate for enterprises dropped from +0.92% in 2008 to +0.60% in 2009 and was therefore higher than
both the national rate (+0.28%) and the average for Piedmont (+0.14%). At the end of 2009, almost 237,000 enterprises
were registered in the province. This stability may be explained by the slight drop in closures (15,473, -2.2%) in view
of a drop in registration of new businesses (16,898), which, although less than last year’s percentage (-6.1% compared
to -7.8%), is still a signal of a declining propensity for going into business.
16
15
Source: InfoCamere (figure updated as of 31 December 2009).
16

17
Definition and development of ethnic entrepreneurship
Only in recent years has ethnic entrepreneurship been accepted as a structural component of the Turin area’s entrepreneur
community. This, however, means that ethnic entrepreneurship is no longer considered to be a new phenomenon but an
integral part of the city’s urban economy.
In Italy, data on ethnic entrepreneurship are collected by the Archive of the Union of the Chambers of Commerce or
InfoCamere, usually referring to firms which are registered by persons born abroad (Caritas, 2009, p. 285). Since there
is no reference to citizenship, data include Italians born abroad (for instance, in the former colonies of Somalia or Libya)
or descendents of Italian emigrants (born in Argentina or Brazil) who have reacquired Italian citizenship, as well as
naturalised immigrants born abroad, both first and second generation. However, InfoCamere excludes foreign citizens
who were born in Italy. As a consequence, the term ‘immigrant entrepreneurship’ would be more accurate, since the kind
of firms recorded by official data are those established by people who were born abroad and have moved to Italy, whether
or not they hold Italian citizenship. Since 2003, the National Confederation of Craftsmanship (CNA – Confederazione
Nazionale dell’Artigianato) and Caritas/Migrantes have been refining the InfoCamere data so that only those immigrant
entrepreneurs who were born abroad and have kept their foreign citizenship are now recorded in the official statistics,
thus eliminating Italian citizens born abroad and naturalised foreigners.
Official data of the Chamber of Commerce of the Province of Turin define immigrant entrepreneurs as those who were
born abroad. However, entrepreneurs born in the European Union, those born in more in industrialised countries such as
the US, Switzerland, Canada, Norway and Australia and those born in Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela (countries from
which there is a long history of emigration to Italy) are recorded by the Chamber of Commerce alongside national
entrepreneurs (Zincone, 2009).
One relevant aspect is the positive contribution that ethnic entrepreneurship makes to the balance between new enterprise
start-ups and closures. In other words, if this balance has been positive in recent years, it is only because of the number
of non-nationals who decided to start their own businesses. In some sectors, the number of Italian-born entrepreneurs is
going down.
At the end of 2009, 28,491 non-national entrepreneurs (whether from the EU or outside it) were on the Turin Chamber
of Commerce’s register. The data show that the number of ethnic entrepreneurs increased by 6.3% between 2008 and
2009 and by 141% between 2000 and 2009.
Profiles of ethnic entrepreneurship
4

18
Figure 3: Immigrant entrepreneurs in the Turin Province area, 2000–2009
Source: Camera di Commercio di Torino, March 2010.
The development of ethnic businesses in the Turin area, as Figure 3 clearly shows, was continuous. Only in the last two
years does it seem to have slowed, almost certainly because of the effects of the global economic crisis.
Comparing this trend with the development of Italian entrepreneurship, it is possible to reflect on the differences in the
two development rates. Between 1997 and 2005, the number of both Italian and foreign enterprises increased. But from
2005, the number of Italian-owned enterprises in Turin started to decrease, returning to the 2000 figure by 2008.
Between 2008 and 2009, ethnic entreprises in Turin increased by only 6.3%, contrasted with much larger increases in
previous years (see Figure 3) and a 20.3% increase from 2007 to 2008. The entry of Romania and Bulgaria into the
European Union on 1 January 2007 influenced the 2008 figures. This event produced a boom in Romanian enterprises
in Italy, and Romanians soon became the largest group among ethnic entrepreneurs.
Romanians, in fact, represent 22% of all non-national entrepreneurs. They are followed by Moroccans (16.2%), French
(5.8%), Chinese (5.4%), Albanians (3.9%) and Germans (3.6%).
Because of Romania’s entry to the EU, the number of ethnic entrepreneurs orginating from eastern European countries
increased 6% in the period 2007–2009 and they now represent 43% of the total (Coccimiglio and Villosio, 2009, p. 33).
Figure 4 shows the regions of origin of ethnic entrepreneurs in Turin between 1997 and 2008.
2000
30,000
10,000
5,000
0
25,000
15,000
20,000
11,843
2008 2009200620042002
28,491
26,815
21,987
17,900
14,330

19
Figure 4: Ethnic entrepreneurs (individual businesses): geographic distribution of areas of origin, 1997 and 2008 (%)
As the figure illustrates, 10 years ago most ethnic entrepreneurs were from North Africa (43%, mostly from Morocco,
Egypt and Tunisia) and Asia (29%, mostly from China). Today, eastern European countries are over-represented thanks
to the Romanian presence among the Moldovans and Albanians. African entrepreneurs are mostly from Senegal and
Nigeria and the South Americans generally come from Peru and Ecuador.
Figure 5 shows the geographic distribution of ethnic entrepreneurs in Turin by country of origin.
Figure 5: National origin of ethnic entrepreneurs, 2009 (%)
29
43
11.2
31.2
4.6 9.77
43
12
10
Eastern Europe
Africa
Mediterranean Africa
Latin America
Asia
1997 2008
2.3
Romania
Morocco
France
China
Albania
Germany
Nigeria
Egypt
Tunisia
Switzerland
Argentina
2.9
2.93.3
3.4
3.6
3.9
5.4
5.8
16.2
22.1

20
Sectoral and spatial distribution of ethnic enterprises
The sectoral distribution of ethnic enterprises in Turin shows a strong presence of commerce and construction. The first
one represents 28.6% of ethnic businesses, while the second one represents 27.9%. Therefore, both sectors together
represent the majority of ethnic enterprises. Business services constitute 15.7%, followed by industry (10.3%), tourism
(6.1%) and personal services (3.8%).
17
Analysing business sectors by nationality, some ethnic specialisations can be noted. Just over 71% of Romanian
entrepreneurs specialise in construction, while Africans are more involved in commerce, especially in neighbourhood
enterprises (food, butcheries, bakeries and greengrocers). Among African entrepreneurs, 59.4% of Moroccans are in the
commerce sector, with 67% of Nigerians and 85.9% of Senegalese.
However, in the last two years, some of the largest groups are showing a stronger spread across many sectors. The
number of Romanians, for example, in the tourist sector increased by 28.3% between 2008 and 2009, in commerce by
22.7% and in personal services by 18.3%. At the same time, in 2009 there were more Moroccan entrepreneurs in the
personal services sector, up by 42.9%, in commerce (+10%) and in construction (+8.4%).
As already stated, entrepreneurship in Piedmont is located primarily in the Turin Province. Ethnic businesses are also
quite ‘Turin-centric’ – the number of ethnic enterprises located in Turin is higher than the number of Italian-led
enterprises, at 71% compared to 29% (Coccimiglio and Villosio, 2009, p. 52).
However, in the last decade, ethnic entrepreneurship has also increasingly moved out into Turin Province. In 2000, only
25% of ethnic enterprises were located in the province and in 2008 the percentage was 29.4%. This has been quite a slow
process, mostly involving the construction sector (up from 34% in 2000 to 39% in 2008) and manufacturing (up from
27% to 36%).
Location data are also interesting when comparing Italian and non-national entrepreneurship. The Italian commerce
sector, for example, is located more in the province than in the city; in 2000, 54.4% of Italian commerce enterprises were
based in the province, against the 45.6% located in the city. In 2008, Italian commerce moved more to the province (57%
of commerce enterprises against 43% located in the city). For ethnic entrepreneurs, there was a slight shift in the opposite
direction. In 2000, 81% of non-national commercial enterprises were located in Turin city, while only 19% were in the
province. In 2008, the number of ethnic commercial activities in the city reached 81.6% against 18.4% located in the
province.
Ethnic entrepreneurship in the commercial sector has a strong urban character compared with Italian entrepreneurship,
although in other sectors a gradual movement towards the province can be detected.
Ownership of ethnic businesses
Not a great deal of data are available on business ownership because no public offices in the local administration are
required to monitor or collect them.
17
Source: Chamber of Commerce of Turin, 2009.

21
However, we can refer to interviews carried out during the field visit. Some ethnic entrepreneurs were interviewed to
collect information about many of the issues discussed in this section.
These interviews were conducted among only a small sample of ethnic entrepreneurs (due to the research guidelines) so
that it is not possible to draw firm conclusions, but the interviewees were able to help us to form a general picture of
some of the issues they faced. We can also take into consideration research carried out by FIERI (International and
European Forum for Immigration Research) and the Chamber of Commerce of Turin in 2009, published in a volume
entitled Food travel and travel food (I viaggi del cibo, il cibo dei viaggi). The research aimed to study the food sector
of ethnic entrepreneurship in Turin, considering three groups as case studies: the Chinese community, Egyptians and
Moroccans. The qualitative part of this research included a number of in-depth interviews with a sample for each
nationality. Some of the information collected in that research may be very useful for the present study.
Considering the ownership of ethnic businesses, it seems that most are individually run. Especially in the commerce
sector, the majority of ethnic entrepreneurs set up their own business without any partnership. However, during the field
visit, we had the opportunity to interview some of these entrepreneurs. Among the Egyptian owners of restaurants and
kebab houses, as among Chinese owners of restaurants, a substantial number of partnerships can be observed. In the
same way, it appears that some Romanian businesses in the construction sector are not individuals’ businesses. Those
partnerships observed are generally between people of the same ethnic origin, although we found one kebab restaurant
that was jointly owned by a Moroccan and an Egyptian. Relationships between two or more owners of an ethnic
enterprise often prove to be familial, most frequently two brothers or father and son.
Finally, the number of franchise businesses owned by ethnic entrepreneurs seems to be quite low. During the field visit
we observed only one franchise fast-food outlet, a piadina (a typical Italian street food similar to a northern African pitta
bread) fast food business owned by a Romanian woman. It is possible that the high cost demanded for a franchise start-
up is perceived as too high a barrier by the majority of ethnic entrepreneurs.
Reasons for choosing an entrepreneurship career
The literature considers many reasons why immigrants consider starting up their own business. It is possible, for
example, to identify six reasons that individuals give for starting businesses (Carter et al, 2003).
n The first category, innovation, involves reasons that describe an individual’s intention to accomplish something new.
n The second category, independence, describes an individual’s desire for freedom, control and flexibility in the use of
one’s time.
n Recognition describes an individual’s intention to have status, approval and recognition from one’s family, friends
and from those in the community.
n ‘Roles’ describes an individual’s desire to follow family traditions or emulate the example of others.
n Financial success involves reasons that describe an individual’s intention to earn more money and achieve financial
security.
n Self-realisation describes reasons involved with pursuing self-directed goals.
Maurizio Ambrosini, an Italian professor in Milan and an expert in ethnic entrepreneurship, discusses cultural reasons,
such as the psychological, religious and professional background of ethnic groups, which may explain why certain
groups are more likely to set up their own businesses than others. The Jewish diaspora would be the best-known example
of such an approach (Ambrosini, 2005).

22
Professor Ambrosini also discusses ‘disadvantage theories’ and ‘mobility blocked theories’ that begin from the
hypothesis that self-employment may be the best answer to unemployment and financial problems for immigrants who
are unable to find a stable position in their host country’s regular labour market. Starting up their own business becomes
the only way in which they can improve their social and economic standing.
The ‘ecological series theory’suggests that when the local entrepreneurship structure loses its vitality or its attractiveness
to the local population, and is therefore no longer able to foster the start-up of new businesses, then space becomes
available for newer – and cheaper – entrepreneurs, and these are usually immigrants who are willing to work longer
hours for less.
Finally, the Portes ‘enclave economy theory’ (Portes and Wilson, 1980), focuses on the spatial and economic
concentration of ethnic businesses. A typical element of this theory is that a strong part of a sizeable immigrant
community will be employed in ethnic businesses present in the area where the immigrants have clustered.
The Turin case study shows clearly that a mixture of all these reasons can be observed among ethnic entrepreneurs.
Certainly, quite a high number of immigrants are employed in ethnic businesses, but this is not necessarily the rule.
Market and competition
The market for which ethnic entrepreneurs generally cater depends on the sector. It is not possible to consider the market
being catered for by all ethnic businesses as a homogeneous entity. If we consider, for example, the construction sector,
it is clear that customers of a Romanian or Albanian construction enterprise will be both Italians and non-nationals.
Furthemore, it can be argued that in such a sector, there will be more Italian customers than any others for obvious
demographic reasons. Generally speaking, most of the ethnic enterprises in the service sector have a quite mixed Italian
and non-national market, although some differences can be observed among different ethnic groups.
For example, during the field visit we observed a number of hairdressers owned by ethnic entrepreneurs in the very
popular area of Barriera di Milano and Porta Palazzo, two of the areas with the highest concentration of immigrants.
Some of the salons were Chinese and some were owned by Moroccans. The Chinese hairdressers have a more mixed
market than the Moroccans. Chinese hairdressers offer a unisex service while Moroccans accept only men. It was also
realised that a small number of Italian customers, both men and women, went to the Chinese shop while no Italian
customers were observed in the Moroccan business.
The situation is similar in the food and restaurant sectors. Kebab and Chinese restaurants are the most Italian customer
oriented, although, especially in kebab restaurants, non-national customers are also very numerous. However, they are
often from different countries, such as Morocco, Egypt, Turkey or Tunisia. Peruvian restaurants in Turin are quite
different though, with their customers mainly from Peru or Ecuador.
African food shops, owned by Nigerians or Senegalese, for example, that sell food but also provide other services such
as phone facilities, hair extensions and newspapers, are quite strongly oriented to a co-ethnic market.
During the field visit we also observed some Romanian entrepreneurs trading at the main Porta Palazzo market. Most of
them are owners of a butchery point in the covered market and many Italians are among their customers because of their
low meat prices. This case is interesting if compared with halal butcheries in Porta Palazzo, where Italian customers are
rare and the clients are primarily from the Islamic community, particularly Moroccans. There is another interesting
example in Porta Palazzo, a big bakery owned by a Moroccan who set up his business 10 years ago and now has a totally
mixed clientele of Italians and immigrants and who employs staff who orginate from Romania.

23
Generally speaking, immigrant entrepreneurs who decide to offer their products to a mainstream market outperform their
Italian competitors on price. Few immigrants base their businesses – especially in the commerce sector – on the quality
of their products.
Workforce, employment conditions and labour relations
It is not possible to give any quantitative description of the characteristics of the workforce employed by ethnic
entrepreneurship in terms of number, gender, age, nationality, educational qualification or migration status. No data are
available for any of these factors. It is only possible to argue, based on our perception, that differences of gender, for
example, depend on the national group being examined. In Moroccan shops, for example, it is more common to see men
employed, and the only exception to this is that many Moroccan bakeries and pastry shops are generally staffed by
women. In the Chinese community, however, there seems to be little gender segregation in their businesses, with the
exception of what are known as ‘Thai-Chinese massage centres’, where the staff are exclusively female.
The nationality of employees may be Italian or non-national and generally depends on the sector and the kind of
enterprise observed.
It is quite hard to give a complete description of employment conditions and labour relations in ethnic enterprises. No
data are available and not many persons involved in the field visit could help us to describe this issue. Labour conditions
are quite different in all sectors and it can be assumed that a good deal of undeclared work is part of the ethnic
entrepreneurial picture. It can happen especially in small enterprises such as shops, although public controls occur quite
often.
In family enterprises, where employees are members of the owner’s family, it is highly likely that some of them will be
working under undefined employment conditions and that some very young family members work illegally.
It is well understood that there is a very low rate of unionisation among immigrant workers, although unfortunately
specific data on this point are not available. Clearly, however, the lack of union representation presents further problems
for such workers should they wish to have contracts and conditions in line with Italian labour legislation.
Problems and barriers
Financial management
Problems connected to financial management are, of course, the ones that generate most worry among ethnic
entrepreneurs. Asking them about the biggest problems they face, most pinpoint access to finance and the availability of
money, in every sector and for all ethnic groups. This problem is, however, one that all entrepreneurs have, both Italian
and non-national.
The economic crisis has made the situation worse, and the rate of closures and bankruptcies in all businesses has
increased in the last two years, as already mentioned.
Ethnic groups that may have suffered less are those based on a strong family and friends network, both in their country
of origin and among their enthic community in the region. Chinese entrepreneurs, for example, usually don’t acquire
credit loans in commercial banks or from private channels such as microfinance agencies. They generally use personal
and family loans as an easier – although not always cheaper – way to get money and to cope with financial problems.

24
Some financial services, especially for the Chinese entrepreneurial community, are provided by a private agency located
in Turin’s area of Barriera di Milano called ‘China Co-op – entreprise services’ that provides banking and financial
support for small and medium enterprises.
Some commercial banks in Turin (Intesa SanPaolo, Unicredit) have improved their policies for helping immigrants and
their entrepreneurship. They have done this by hiring employees of foreign origin who speak Middle Eastern languages
or Spanish, and placing them in front-office roles in two areas of the city where the number of immigrant residents is
high. However, the banks have also said that the number of ethnic entrepreneurs seeking credit loans is quite low. This
may be because there is a widespread distrust among some ethnic groups of commercial banks and financial institutions.
Marketing
During the field visit, few problems or barriers that ethnic entrepreneurs encounter in seeking a market for their products
or services were registered. The insitutions and main actors we interviewed reported that ethnic entrepreneurship has
suffered the same drop in consumers as every other business during the financial crisis. This drop in demand is highest
in the commerce sector and in neighbourhood enterprises.
Of course, many of those businesses that address their offer to a specific ethnic market, such as halal butcheries or
African food shops, suffer more as their customer base is narrower. However, other small enterprises in the food sector,
such as kebab shops, and some Lebanese, Egyptian and Chinese restaurants have a good mix of Italian and non-national
customers and have not encountered any specific problems in finding consumers. The ethnic food sector is, of course,
one of the most thriving, and its owners are able to capitalise on this in their marketing strategies.
For example, many Chinese restaurants in Turin’s city centre have decided to offer food traditionally associated with
Japanese outlets. Today, a huge number of them offer sushi at a very competitive price compared with the city’s oldest
original Japanese restaurant.
Rules, regulations, bureaucracy and intermediary institutions
Ethnic entrepreneurs face the same difficulties complying with requirements and regulations and in their relations with
bureaucratic institutions as an indigenous Italian entrepreneur may encounter. They may, of course, have language
difficulties to overcome, and a second difficulty may be their lack of understanding of something we can call the
‘bureaucratic culture’. Standards of environmental regulation, labour rights and health and safety regulations within EU
countries can be quite different from those in the developing countries from which many immigrants have originated,
and if an ethnic entrepreneur comes from a region of the world in which state regulation and enforcement of
environmental protection, labour rights and health and safety standards is weak or non-existent, then there may be a
temptation to ignore or sidestep the legal framework that governs business in Italy. Some ethnic entrepreneurs may also
exhibit distrust towards any form of state bureaucracy.
Language, particularly in its bureaucratic form, can be a big problem for many first-generation immigrants who want to
be entrepreneurial. It has to be said that this is a problem even for many Italian national entrepreneurs. It is not possible
to be specific about this problem for different types of entrepreneurs because different sectors and different groups will
be subject to different regulations.
Unfamiliarity with the local and national legal institutional framework for business activity is, of course, another barrier
for many ethnic entrepreneurs. Evidence of such a problem was found during the field visit, when many entrepreneurs
interviewed reported that they regularly sought help from business advice and consulting services, often operated by
their co-ethnics, particularly in the start-up phase. These advisors might be friends or relatives or, more often, just people

25
recommended by other co-ethnics operating at the interface of the mainstream business environment and the ethnic
community of which they are a part.
As already outlined in this report, there are a number of different opportunities and projects intended to help ethnic
entrepreneurs start their businesses. Their purpose is to help surmount such problems, although there is, of course, a lack
of awareness among ethnic entrepreneurs of the existence of this kind of help to deal with the more bureaucratic elements
of managing a business.

27
Overall strategy
Ethnic entrepreneurship development plays a very important role in the overall strategy supporting integration of
migrants at the local level. It represents a key issue for Turin’s city administration, although only a few policies are being
promoted specifically for ethnic entrepreneurs. This means that the city administration tends to consider ethnic
entrepreneurship as part of a more general entrepreneurship issue. The idea is not to underline any diversity or specificity
of ethnic entrepreneurship and to consider migration as an ordinary phenomenon. Therefore, the main strategy is to
strengthen the idea of a single group of entrepreneurship policy recipients, whether native or immigrant.
However, state and non-state rules seem to have had a significant influence on the self-employment trajectories of ethnic
minorities. In most cases, becoming an entrepreneur is not a voluntary choice for immigrants but is often a necessity
triggered by the Italian legislative framework. Many immigrants decide to start up a small or medium-sized business
because this makes it easier to obtain a renewal of a permit to stay in Italy. The very high labour market mobility –
established basically in Law 14 February 2003 (also known as the ‘Biagi law’) – does not allow immigrants to obtain
all those requirements needed for a regular residence permit, as established in Law 30 July 2002, n.189, also called the
‘Bossi-Fini law’.
Furthermore, in order to apply for specific jobs, a professional certificate is often required, through a qualification
conversion process that is not always easy and fast. For that reason, although many immigrants residing in Italy have
degree-level education, their jobs often do not reflect their level of knowledge and abilities and their economic value is
often underestimated by the labour market. Most of them decide to apply for jobs such as construction, commerce or
food, which are not protected by professional regulation and legislation.
The current financial crisis and the restructuring of the Italian labour market have also adversely influenced the
employment market. As a matter of survival, many workers have had to consider all employment options, including
starting up a small business.
Finally, the strong desire of immigrants to improve their families’ economic and social condition makes them less risk
averse than Italians generally are, and this may also explain why immigrants’ businesses often last longer.
Objectives
As previously noted, local policies promoting ethnic entrepreneurship are part of a wider policy focus on the promotion
of general entrepreneurship in the city of Turin. However, some include specific measures that provide services or
facilities to immigrants who want to start up a business. Most of them are intended to facilitate formal access to the
information needed to start and administer the business (such as information provided in different languages, specific
training programmes, counselling). No specific policies to develop ethnic entrepreneurship were discovered. All other
measures observed during the fieldwork were part of the local administration’s general strategy to improve urban
economic development. Of course, policymakers understand that as the number of immigrants residing in the city of
Turin grows, so does the number of foreign recipients of these policies.
Despite a growing awareness of increasing migrant entrepreneurship, the Municipality of Turin has chosen not to devote
a specific policy to the development of ethnic entrepreneurship, choosing instead a more inclusive approach that does
not consider such phenomenon as extraordinary.
Policies, rules and regulations
5

28
SME sector policies mainly support those who decide to start a business, and the general objective is to improve the
allocation of resources for applicant entrepreneurs. On one hand, therefore, such support takes the form of training or
consultancy programmes and, on the other, of financial resources distributed as loans, micro credit initiatives or other
financial concessions. As a result of the increasing number of foreign citizens who decide to start a business, one of the
objectives of the policies drawn up is to simplify the way in which such support programmes may be accessed, by
making information available in languages other than Italian. Such material is translated into the languages of the
country of origin of the largest national groups resident in the region (Arabic, Chinese, Romanian, Albanian and
Spanish). This trend is also confirmed by the fact that in the past few years, the institutions involved have hired many
cultural mediators.
Another important objective, which will be dealt with more extensively later, is to achieve a harmonisation of the
policies aimed at supporting small and medium enterprises through policies designed to promote the city’s urban
development. In particular, some of the financing initiatives are dedicated to those entrepreneurs choosing to start their
business in suburban and more challenging areas, which in most cases are those districts most densely populated by
foreign citizens. It is worth noting that the city’s Department of Integration Affairs is also in charge of urban
regeneration. This suggests that the regeneration of some urban areas goes hand in hand with the development of
entrepreneurial activities.
Main actors
The main actors involved in such policy initiatives come from both the public and private sectors. Some are directly
involved in the local administration.
Three city departments are actively working towards the definition of measures and rules applicable to entrepreneurship
in general, and ethnic entrepreneurship in particular, by playing a political and coordination role. They are the
Department of Trade Affairs (Assessorato al Commercio), the Department for Labour Affairs (Assessorato al Lavoro)
and the Department for Integration Affairs (Assessorato all’Integrazione).
The Department of Trade Affairs hosts the Business Front Office (Sportello Unico per le Imprese), the agency offering
services to local businesses and future entrepreneurs. Besides offering help in terms of orientation and support in dealing
with public bureaucracy, it also provides financial support services offering the loans necessary to start and regenerate
small businesses. The office is part of a network of bodies (Chamber of Commerce, Regional Authority, Provincial
Authority) and besides providing for a wide range of public financing opportunities, it also offers help on the legal and
economic aspects of the establishment of businesses (such as the creation of business plans and choosing the right
company name).
The city’s Department for Labour Affairs, headed by the deputy mayor of the City of Turin, is in charge of professional
training and the allocation of financial resources made available by the Structural Funds and by the Ministry of Labour
(former Law n.266/1997).
Although specific measures to support ethnic entrepreneurship are not part of its agenda, the city’s Department of
Integration Affairs plays an important role in the coordination of the various integration policies and is informally active
in helping set up migrant and business associations.
While these city administration departments play a mainly political role, the actors with a more active role both at the
designing stage as well as at the stage of policy execution and implementation are the Local Development Agencies
(Agenzie di Sviluppo Locale). These are entities devoted to promoting the economic and social development of restricted

29
areas within a city. In many cases, such agencies are the result of collaboration between various public institutions and
the main public and private local actors; they design projects and services to improve the competitiveness of small and
medium local enterprises and the ability of a given area to attract capital. In Turin, important roles are played by the San
Salvario Local Development Agency, the Via Arquata Development Agency and a Development Agency named The
Gate. They are active in districts characterised by a high concentration of resident immigrants and therefore a large
number of their measures inevitably address ethnic entrepreneurs.
The direct involvement of ethnic entrepreneurs is slightly higher in local development agencies, which often also have
relationships with migrant associations present on the territories within their competence. At a central local
administration level, however, such involvement is less frequent and mainly limited to the presentation stage of the
policies adopted. The city’s Department of Integration Affairs is a small exception to this; given its nature, the
relationship it has both with migrant associations and individual ethnic entrepreneurs is more stable. In particular, this
department has created some informal assistance procedures which will be dealt with more extensively later on.
Other institutional actors should also be mentioned that, in general, work in a network and with local administrations to
create measures and projects supporting entrepreneurship, both general and ethnic. They include the Chamber of
Commerce of Turin, the Turin branch of the National Confederation of Crafts (CNA – Confederazione Nazionale
dell’Artigianato) and the Revenue Agency organisation – Piedmont Regional Division (Agenzia delle Entrate-Divisione
Regionale Piemonte), which have created and implemented some interesting projects specifically addressing ethnic
entrepreneurs. Such projects will be dealt with in detail later on.
Targets
As previously mentioned, the majority of policies addressing entrepreneurship are targeted at applicant entrepreneurs in
general, whether Italian and not. The municipality’s inclusive approach to support all entrepreneurs makes it difficult to
distinguish between the various targets of such measures. Obviously, in some cases such policies are only inclusive in
principle, since the presence of migrants is so high in some parts of the city that in practice the beneficiaries are mainly
immigrants. However, the figures that we have collected through our field survey indicate that it is not possible to
confine our study to individual districts. The number of foreign business proprietors benefiting from orientation
programmes and similar policies, or applying for particular kinds of financial support, is high but they are never in the
majority.
Although the policies do not address a specific ethnic target, it is possible to identify the phase of entrepreneurship
addressed. The majority of measures address the start-up phase of a business. Such policies include orientation and
associated programmes, the setting up of front offices offering information as well as legal and administrative advice,
loan programmes, subsidised loans and training courses for would-be entrepreneurs. A small number of policies address
businesses that are already operating and their main aim is to provide financial support to overcome difficult times or to
promote the relocation of businesses towards suburban or poorer urban areas.
Institutions involved
The framework of national and local institutions relevant to businesses is rather complex and reflects the decentralisation
approach typical of Italy.
At national level, the competent institution appointed by the national government is the Ministry for Economic
Development, which includes the Productive Activities, International Trade and Cohesion Policies departments. The
ministry has the task of implementing industrial development policies for the SME sector through its Directorate-

30
General for the Promotion of Entrepreneurial Activities. The main activity of this directorate is to provide and grant
financial concessions to businesses where this will help pursue important industrial policy objectives. The directorate
also manages the guarantee fund for Italian small and medium enterprises, while the ministry has the task of deciding
and adapting the eligibility criteria for access to the allocated funds.
An important role is played by each individual regional authority. The Piedmont region, which covers the city of Turin,
includes two directorates that fulfil fundamental roles for businesses: the Education, Professional Training and Labour
Directorate and the Productive Activities Directorate. The first includes the Division for the Promotion and Development
of Entrepreneurship and Cooperation, which is in charge of planning and implementing activities for the setting up of
businesses through the use of financial resources allocated by the European Union’s Structural Funds. In addition, the
division is in charge of guaranteeing access to loan programmes and of promoting microcredit programmes.
The second regional directorate, on the other hand, includes the Requalification and Territorial Development Division,
which is in charge of planning integrated support for businesses and urban regeneration.
The Province of Turin also plays a fundamental role in the definition of policies and measures promoting
entrepreneurship. In particular, it is worth mentioning the work of the front office service Become Self-employed (MIP,
Mettersi in Proprio), supporting new businesses free of charge. In particular, MIP deals with:
n promotion of entrepreneurship (system interventions);
n consultancy services before set-up;
n mentoring after set-up.
Within the Municipality of Turin, the departments concerned are the ones mentioned in the ‘Main actors’ section above.
In particular, the Business Front Office is in charge of offering assistance for local businesses. Besides offering
orientation and support in dealing with public bureaucracy, it also provides financial support services offering the loans
necessary to start and revamp small businesses.
The role of the Chamber of Commerce of Turin, a state institution not directly dependent on local government, is
significant. Besides keeping the Register of Businesses and Crafts, the Chamber of Commerce offers many opportunities
for economic support, including loans, entrepreneurial training, consultancy and orientation. Particular attention should
also be given to the Study and Research Division, which publishes a report every year on the entrepreneurial situation
in the Turin area, including extensive insights on ethnic entrepreneurship.
Other non-state institutions that play an important role in entrepreneurship are professional associations. Among them,
the Turin arm of the National Confederation of Crafts and Small and Medium Enterprises plays a leading role and some
of its programmes are directly targeted at the phenomenon of ethnic entrepreneurship. A project named Dedalo, for
example, is the result of a collaboration with the Alma Terra Association (intercultural women’s association in Turin)
and provides for a permanent cultural mediation service for the start-up and development of businesses. This is one of
the few Italian examples of an employers’ association offering such a service free of charge. The main goal is to reduce
the obstacles that foreign citizens face when starting up a business.
Similarly, the API-TO (Association of Small and Medium Enterprises of Turin and its Province) plays an important
agency role for the SME sector within the city area. The association offers assistance in relation to trade unions,
technology, environment and sales. In addition, it acts as a representative among local institutions and authorities.

31
Access and involvement in policymaking
The access and involvement of ethnic entrepreneurs in policymaking is a challenging topic.
At the highest level, as far as the Turin area is concerned, individuals do not seem to play a big role in the planning of
measures by the city’s institutions for ethnic entrepreneurship. This role is mostly informal and unstructured. The city’s
political agenda doesn’t allow for the direct participation of ethnic entrepreneurs, which is partly due to the lack of
organisations representing them. The highly individual character of ethnic entrepreneurship reduces the chances of active
involvement in defining measures and policies.
Nevertheless, interesting cases of ‘informal’ involvement have emerged from observation in the field. It should be noted
that these instances are limited to the solving of specific issues about one or more foreign entrepreneurs who applied to
the competent administration offices for assistance. On rare occasions, the Councillorship for Integration has organised
meetings with persons interested in setting up a business. In many cases, such an interest originated from suggestions
made by the administration itself.
For instance, the Hatun Wasi Association is a group of Peruvian women working in food distribution at the Pellerina
Public Park. During the last few months it has started informal orientation in collaboration with the offices at the
Councillorship for Integration (Assessorato all’Integrazione) in order to consider the possibility of some members of the
association setting up a business. This case demonstrates the city administration’s intention to give support, from the
highest levels, for similar situations.
18
The effect of Hatun Wasi’s intentions could be the trigger – according to the
Councillorship’s intentions – to solve similar issues and find a balance for integration and respect of the rules, from one
side, and support for social initiatives for the different immigrant communities.
The data from Turin’s Chamber of Commerce are quite significant. On 30 June 2009, 18,788 businesses with owners
originating outside the EU were registered with the Piedmont Chamber of Commerce, of which 10,107 were in the Turin
Province. This information alone is not an indicator of membership, since registration at the Chamber of Commerce’s
Register of Companies is required by law for the majority of business activities. More interesting is the number of ethnic
entrepreneurs registered at trade associations, such as CNA (National Confederation for the Craft Sector and Small and
Medium Enterprises of Italy).
Although institutions have not set up specific structures that formally aim to involve ethnic entrepreneurs in defining
policies, it must be noted that entrepreneurs themselves have not yet developed parallel organisations able to act as
representative institutions in the Turin area. In other cities, such as Milan or Rome, ethnic entrepreneurs have set up their
own trade associations, often as an answer to specific needs.
18
The association itself was created following the Councillorship for Integration's specific intention to solve the challenging issue of
food distribution by the Peruvian community in the Pellerina Public Park. The idea was to promote the self-development of
associations and communities and to legalise certain situations as far as possible and to bring them in line with the relevant
legislation.

32
The Association of Foreign Entrepreneurs in Italy was set up in Rome in November 2009 and gathers together foreign
entrepreneurs and representatives of organisations fighting for migrants’ rights. Its main aim is to fight any form of racial
discrimination against those doing business. In particular, the association was set up following a protest from the
Association Rights Project (Associazione Progetto Diritti) against an Italian Social Welfare Institution memo, issued in
February 2009, stating the need to ‘foster surveillance with regards to businesses owned by ethnic minorities’. The
association intends to remove all impediments to carrying out business activities that might be connected with an
entrepreneur’s foreign origins, fight unlawfulness in the workplace, fight any attempt to impose higher interest rates on
foreign entrepreneurships, foster forms of mutual assistance and credit facilities for foreign people, and work to build
cooperation to set up businesses and pools.
19
It is worth mentioning the experience of some Moroccan entrepreneurs’ associations in Turin set up some years ago and
whose activity and success were always connected to the political scene in Morocco. The Hassania Association, for
instance, has been officially supported by Morocco’s King Hassan II and its officials have taken part in recent years in
many meetings organised by Turin’s Chamber of Commerce. By contrast, the president of the Association of Muslims
of the Alps (Associazione Musulmani delle Alpi) is a small Moroccan entrepreneur who has not taken part in many public
events because he has been critical of Morocco’s government.
20
Formal access to entrepreneurship
Setting up one’s own business is many people’s dream, but the process has become more and more difficult. Rules and
legislation are often an obstacle for both Italian and foreign would-be entrepreneurs. For the latter, the difficulties are
even greater.
Those who wish to set up a business must be citizens with valid permits and who fulfil legal requirements. The highly
formalised language of the relevant laws and bureaucracy present a barrier to those for whom Italian is not their first
language (and often also for native Italian speakers). Even so, they must meet all the deadlines and requirements of the
bureaucratic process, many of them different to or even non-existent in their countries of origin.
The applicable legislation is found mainly in Legislative Decrees 286/98, 3/2007 and DPR 394/99. Foreign citizens
willing to set up an autonomous business in Italy should:
n wait for the issuing of the so-called ‘flows’ decree, issued yearly by the Italian government, which sets both the
maximum number of foreign nationals who can come to work in the country and lists the occupations which will be
accepted and those which are excluded from that year’s immigration quota;
n just as Italian citizens seeking to set up businesses, they must be legally and professionally eligible according to law
(having, for instance, no criminal convictions, or possessing the qualifications required by Italian law to practise their
trade or profession);
n have a permanent residence, demonstrated by a purchase or lease agreement, or by a statement by an Italian or
foreign citizen legally residing in Italy that they are providing accomodation for the applicant;
n have a yearly income higher than the minimum threshold required by Italian law for exemption from health costs.
19
Source: http://www.progettodiritti.it
20
Personal interview with Francesco Ciafaloni, Società Ricerca e Formazione – Turin.

33
Foreign entrepreneurs willing to set up a business must also apply for a ‘Declaration’, issued by the Chamber of
Commerce, stating that there are no impediments to the setting up of the business. The entrepreneur must also rely on
the Chamber of Commerce for the issue of the ‘Evaluation of parameters on the availability of resources to start the
activity’ certificate (Attestazione dei parametri riguardanti la disponibilità delle risorse per iniziare l’attività). When
considering whether or not to issue such a certificate, the Chamber of Commerce takes into consideration the costs
connected to the lease or purchase of the buildings necessary for the business, costs connected to machinery and systems
and costs connected to equipment, supplies, stock and so forth.
As far as the permit to stay is concerned, foreign citizens entering Italy for the first time must apply for a specific permit
to stay for autonomous employment (permesso di soggiorno per lavoro autonomo). If the applicant has a permit of stay
for different reasons (study, tourism, business), he or she needs to make an application to convert their permit into
permission to remain in Italy for autonomous employment reasons before they may start their business.
Finally, foreign citizens who have lived in Italy for at least five years and already have a valid permit to stay and who
have demonstrated the minimum required income and permanent accommodation can apply for the issue of a long-term
permit through the local police authorities (Questura) as well as for autonomous employment reasons. The State Police
is the competent body for renewing or issuing the permit to stay that must be shown when seeking to be entered in the
Register of Companies.
Once all the above conditions are fulfilled, the applicant must register their business in the Register of Companies of the
Chamber of Commerce and, where appropriate, in the Register of Craft Businesses (Albo delle Imprese Artigiane).
He or she will then have to apply for VAT registration at the Italian Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate), register
with Social Security (INPS) and the Italian Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work (INAIL) if the business
takes on employees or if dangerous equipment is used.
As to the most common types of individual businesses set up by ethnic entrepreneurs, there are extra requirements to
fulfil. The phone centres set up by many Moroccans, Egyptians, Peruvians and Ecuadorians are subject to a specific
authorisation issued by the telecommunication guarantee authority (Autorità per le Garanzie nella Comunicazione) by
application to the Territorial Department of the Ministry of Communications (Ispettorato territoriale del Ministero delle
Comunicazioni). Those wanting to set up a hairdresser’s shop, mostly Chinese and Moroccans, need a professional
qualification recognised by the Chamber of Commerce’s Provincial Commission for Crafts. Lastly, commercial activities
such as cafes and restaurants – in other words, the most common businesses among all the main immigrant communities
in Turin – need a special certificate of permission issued by the municipal authorities.
As soon as the business is started, the entrepreneur has to send a formal communication to the municipal authorities and
to the Tax Office (Ufficio Tributi) in order to have the appropriate waste disposal charge applied. Other charges to the
entrepreneur include IRAP (Regional Tax on Industrial Activity) that is paid by business and IRPEF (Personal Income
Tax) paid by the owner by adding the income from the business to any other forms of income. The IRPEF rate is
calculated on a progressive basis according to total income.
Other references in the national legislation on entrepreneurship state general principles rather than specific requirements
or rules, such as the accountability principle. According to law, the entrepreneur pursues their business and is solely
responsible for it and it is guaranteed by both the owner’s business and personal assets. As far as book-keeping is
concerned, the entrepreneurs should seek expert assistance.

34
Zoning plans
Zoning plans and ethnic entrepreneurship in Turin have an indirect yet strong relationship. The presence of areas
featuring a high concentration of immigrants (San Salvario, Barriera di Milano and San Paolo, among others) has
inevitably led the city administration to reshape the current zoning plan, approved in 2009, taking into consideration the
new inhabitants.
City planning has totally transformed Turin in recent decades. It was accelerated by the 2006 Winter Olympic Games
and is still continuing. The new zoning plan has revolutionised the shape of the city through three main initiatives:
n rehabilitation of the many old industrial areas;
n new infrastructure (underground lines, railway stations);
n artistic and architectural rehabilitation in the historic centre.
The intention behind these three lines of action was a general renovation of Turin’s image that was, until then, bound to
its industrial past. The city has been totally transformed during the last 10 years and this has coincided with the period
of greatest foreign immigration. The old areas where migrants from southern Italy (Sicily, Calabria, Apulia and Naples)
used to live are now inhabited by Moroccans, Romanians, Albanians, Chinese or Peruvians. Also, businesses that were
once monopolised by the so-called meridionali (people from southern Italy) have slowly made room for migrant-owned
businesses. Today, the historic market of Porta Palazzo is an example of this melting pot of migrations in Turin.
The city authorities decided on a zoning plan that respected the evolution of the different populations that inhabit the
different city areas. Even though the rehabilitation of the historic centre (the so-called Quadrilatero Romano and the
once notorious Via Barbaroux, for instance, today an elegant downtown street) has caused many foreign businesses to
leave the city centre, in other areas the administration has tried to value the presence of migrant-owned commercial
businesses.
Turin’s mayor, Sergio Chiamparino, recently claimed that the city authorities are willing to include the ethnic market of
Porta Palazzo among the city’s tourist attractions.
21
A business licence deregulation campaign will foster the setting up
of ethnic and theme cafes and restaurants. Lastly, negotiations are continuing with Italian and foreign itinerant traders in
order to consider the possibility of keeping the market stalls open during the afternoon.
Nevertheless, it must be noted that in Turin there are no mono-ethnic areas, although in some city areas there are
dominant nationalities. However, business has followed two independent patterns, influenced either by previous
migration streams or by the city planning patterns.
22
In the first case, as already mentioned, foreign traders penetrated
areas where migrants from southern Italy used to lead business; in the second case, ethnic entrepreneurs followed the
different orientation of the city areas and adapted to local market needs. Peruvian entrepreneurs opened up their
businesses in the San Paolo area, Moroccan and Egyptian restaurant owners settled in the city centre, Chinese
hairdressers and clothes shops focused on the popular Barriera di Milano area, while Romanian builders settled in
suburban areas.
21
Emanuela Minucci, La Stampa, 10 August 2009.
22
Personal interview with Councillor Ilda Curti – Councillorship for Integration – City of Turin.

35
The Councillorship for Integration recently carried out a survey on business activities in the Barriera di Milano area,
where 16.6% of the entire migrant population in Turin lives,
23
within the Urban2 Project. According to the survey, many
Moroccan women who had set up food speciality shops had come from other areas of the city centre (its historic centre
or San Salvario) following the increase in real estate value in those areas.
Sectoral rules and regulations
The city’s rules regulating the granting of business licences for trade and restoration activities has certainly had the
strongest influence on the development of ethnic entrepreneurship. As already mentioned, the authorities are willing to
develop this kind of small enterprise in the Porta Palazzo area, which already features a high concentration of mostly
Moroccan speciality food shops and restaurants. Through the granting of new business licences, the authorities will
prompt the development of new small businesses in one of the most multicultural areas of the city.
Generally speaking, during recent years the sectoral rules on trade activities have shown a tendency to liberalise the
market as much as possible. A first step was the removal of some professional and training requirements, for instance in
the field of food and drinks distribution. This process has simplified the setting up of businesses (food speciality shops,
restaurants, cafes) owned by foreign citizens, since it has reduced the requirements for starting such activities.
Not all legislation, national or local, has had a positive effect on ethnic entrepreneurship. For instance, from 2006, new
regional and municipal laws have established specific requirements about phone centres and include health conditions
(the managing and maintenance of telephone booths), opening hours, facilities (two toilets are required, one of which
must be suitable for disabled people) and operational procedures (customers’ identification through ID cards).
24
The City
of Turin has adopted a regulation on this topic, requiring some important structural works that are not always feasible.
25
The immediate consequence was that many phone centres, mainly owned by immigrants, closed down.
Business know-how
Different measures were adopted in the Turin area in order to strengthen awareness and share information about the
possibilities of setting up and managing a business. The majority of them focus on business start-up and some of them
are specifically addressed to foreign citizens.
Some of these measures are delivered by organisations that are not directly bound to the city authorities, although the
city, along with the provincial and regional administrations, are often included as sponsoring or financing institutions.
At the institutional level, a series of important initiatives are supported by a dedicated one-stop shop (Sportello Unico
per le Imprese del Comune di Torino) and the MIP service, controlled by the Province of Turin and the Chamber of
Commerce. These points of reference offer mainly orientation to make aspiring entrepreneurs aware of the risks and to
assess business feasibility to avoid the creation of weak, high-mortality businesses.
23
2009 data on the 6th District (Circoscrizione 6): total foreign resident population 20,615 citizens. Statistical Office – City of Turin.
24
L’immigrazione che intraprende, FIERI and Turin's Chamber of Commerce, 2008, p. 148.
25
Deliberations of the City Council in 24/5/2004 e 13/3/2006. For further details, see:
http://www.comune.torino.it/commercio/sanita/autorizzazioni/guida/phone.htm.

Ethnic entrepreneurship - case study- Turin, Italy

Ethnic entrepreneurship - case study- Turin, Italy

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